Corporan nursing lingering thumb injury

NEW YORK -- Astros catcher Carlos Corporan has spent the last two months dealing with a swollen and bruised right thumb, which has been affecting him behind the plate and swinging the bat, especially from the left side of the plate.

Corporan jammed the thumb trying to block a ball with his bare hand in mid-June against the Rays in St. Petersburg. He's been trying to put extra padding on his thumb and has been holding the bat in different ways to take pressure off the hand.

"It's been hurting," he said. "Just the fact I don't play every day, it's something you have to keep treating and then take care of. I'm just trying to forget about it and perform the best I can."

Because he plays two or three times a week as the backup to Jason Castro, Corporan is able to play through the injury. Had he been the starting catcher, he might have had to go on the disabled list and let it calm down.

"I'm trying to do my best and take some medicine and try to get the best treatment I have for my thumb," he said. "The [training staff] has been doing a pretty good job. They've kept me in the lineup, avoiding the DL."